A 3 way switch will not have the words on or off written on it. The power wire the neutral wire and the traveller or switch wire.
2 Lights Share 2 3way Switches I Want To Separate The Home
How do i wire a three way switch. Tape the wire nut to the wires with electrical tape. At the 3 way switch the white cable wire is marked black and connected to the common terminal. Three way switches can be wired in a number of different ways depending on where they are located relative to the light fixture in the circuit cable runs. Three way switches require a three wire cable. Connect the wires to the new 3 way switches with ground screws using one of the two wiring diagrams fig. For example they can be arranged so that the feed cable runs to the first three way switch then to the light fixture box then to the second three way switch.
Twist the wires together with a yellow wire nut. At the other end the white wire is marked black again and spliced to the black wire running the hot terminal on the light. The black and red wires running between the switches connect the travelers together. 3 way switch wiring diagram. The cable should also have a ground wire or a total of four wires in the cable. Push the wires into the back of the gang box.
Take a closer look at a 3 way switch wiring diagram. Connect one of the green pigtails from the orange wire nut to each of the bare copper ground wires that are connected to the three fixtures. Wire nut the neutral white wires together. This is the existing white neutral wire coming into the box and the new white neutral wire from the 3 wire romex youre going to use to connect the other 3 way switch you will install in a minute. Feed a length of 14 3 type nm cable or 12 3 if youre connecting to 12 gauge wire between the two boxes. Pick the diagram that is most like the scenario you are in and see if you can wire your switch.
With these diagrams below it will take the guess work out of wiring. Hook the curled end of the wire under the screw then tighten down the screw to hold the wire firmly in place. White black and red plus a bare ground wire. Replace any regular switches with the 3 way switches. Before you start installing take a look at your new 3 way switch to identify all of the terminals that you will be connecting wires to. Attach the black power cable from the wall to the general screw black in the three way light switch.
Traveler wire terminals these are located on each side of the switch towards the top of the switch. The 14 3 cable has three insulated conductors. This might seem intimidating but it does not have to be. The system also requires three way switches. This first step will eventually send power directly to the light fixture.
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